The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1887-10-31
ALL WERE LOST
ON BOARD r4E STEAMER VERNON
In Lake nIIshigan-A Grew OF twenty-five
seamon and nn uniknown Number Of
passeugers-Nons Left to Tell tho 4
Btory--Captain's Thrilling Recital.

| AZ AoAo 1A'ehknh-A StoW ok sAWcntystWC
seamon and nn unknovn Number, of
| Passeugsrs-Nons Left TO Tell tho I.
story--Cap.ain'sT Thrilling Recital. n,
MILWAUKEE, Oct. 30.-The passenger
propeller Vernon was wrecked In the ter
rible gale that swept Lake Michigan yes
terday, and her entiro crew Of twenty-five
persons and the passengers, number IN.
known, are supposed to have been lost.
It involves a greater loss Of lie than any
Of the previous disasters on tho Lake this
season, not excepting the propeller Cham.
plain, which burned early In the spriug
of Charlvoixr drowning twenty. -four per.
sons. A most singular coincidence Is that
the Vernon was the vessel which took the
place Of the Champlain in the Northern
Michigan line and had only been on the
line since Angus! /. She was ono Of the
finest furnished passenger. boats on tho
lakes. and had q valuation OF $7S OOO.
Captain Moran, ol the steamship Superior,
which arrived here at $3.50 o'clock last
night, brought the frnt news OF the wreck.
ITO pass ono man on q rsit appealing for
our help. another dying. from exposure,
and a small boat In which we could SEQ
one woman and three men, ono Of Sths
latter hailing with q coat stuck up on his
oar, all being tosaed about In the terrible
sea, without our being ab!e to render
them any assistanca was heartrendInR In
tho extreme" said Capt. Moran. ave
were also fighting for our lives, our steam.
or having become disabled in tho sea.
With the exception Of tue cooks our on.
tire crew were down below, some Of them
steering tho vessel with O temporary tackle
which we had rlgyed up, while the o.he1s
were trying to repair llthe. break. Our
tiller had become disconnected from the
rudder post, leaving us * B
AT TIE MERCY OF THE SEAS !
until We made q temporary tackle. With
this We managed to Keep our vessel
out sof the trough Of the seas and keep
her before tho gale. 1t was three hours
before We had made repairs, 80 that we
could handle ourselves, and then we were
out Of sight of the ship.wrecked men.
The cooks on deck were the frat TO call
our attention to the wreckags. 1T was
about 10 o'clock this morning, when OF
Two Rivers, some milea out in Lake
Michigan, that We passed through some
lumber. Five miles further on we passet
lot Of barrels; then We encountered
wreckage for some distance, Among 1t
was furniture and bed clothing besides
life preservers, here and there. One cook
said he counted thirteen life perssrvers,
and I know It mus! have been passenger
boat to carry 20 many. We passed 90 near
some Of the life peraeryers that they might
have been picked up had tho cooks used
pike pole. was only on deck part OF
tho time and no others OF the crew came
up, as thoy bad oil they could do where
they were. lS n r. :; ~ ;, z
"When about aix milessseass northeast Of
Manitowoc, the cook, who lad been
keeping lookout, cslied me on deck
with the Information that raft could be
seen with man omit. As I went on deck
| could plainly Gee the man waving hia
hand to us. He was ;;i=!,.
STANDING UPRIGHT ON TIE RAFT
which was about half o mile between
us and the shore, aud the ces vas
washing over 1t. Itappesred about twelve
feet square and it might be: the top Of a
cabin. Poor fellow, he must have thought
it cruel Of "a to pasB by and leave him
there to suffer. Ten minutes later we
sighted another raft, alao shout O half
Ia Two m nj =
apparently not more than four by eight
feet, and looked like piecs Of .bulwark.
On it was lying q man who, although stil!
alive, probably did not disCern us, Ns he
was loo far gone. we could see him din
bis head as his frail little t.oas wes tossed
about in the Sea, as though he vas shout
dead" - a h / -,
| 7"We saw a yawl with three men and one
woman in 1t, a.little luther Ronth. There
may, however, have been more OF them
lying down In the boat, the: :threa se saw
being On tho seats. One OF the men was
standing up holding his osr, with his coat
IeTinglng to attract attention. Their hearts
must have been 9isddened in their exaec-
tatlons OF help from us. How inhuman
they must hsys thought us when we
passed them by, and within a
mile, too. without Eoyss tnruing our
vessel towards them. Bat with
our star steering Il gear dissb;ed
as it wsa, we could not eteer our yseeel
and there was nothing for uu to do but
hope that some Of the vesses coming up
the lake sstern Of us might diGcover them
and pick them up. There 10 possibility
that large three and Oft fchooner coming
up the lake ailer us may have picked up
tho persops in the boat. shewas three OF
four miles astern Of us, Gnd l could see
through the glass tbs. ahs was bearing to.
wards then. /, - q ''5:s ''55.s: Z.
}fi': x IMPOSSIBLE 70 LID THIN.
But she may have been bound Tor Man
itowac and could have passed wi.hou. soc,
ling them. There was little possibility
that ehe corld hsvs taken the men oH the
RATS, and it io even doubtful if she coull
pick up the ya~i in epch gea.
If she could get clo0s enough
to throw line " CO abe rcudded
by, and i, they held = onto 1t, :. there
might be chance; for, them to bo saved.
1t was as heavy a Rea SO I have exp pari.
euced in all my life on the lakes. Just to
give you an idea ofit, tho Sandusky, which
We had In taT sometimes buried herself 80
that only hsif OF her masts could bs seen.
| Once abe stayed under GO long that
thought ehe was gone. We will MAKO re:
pairs here and 90 on to Chicsgo. si;i33',
i Tho finding of ths pilot house Of the
propeller Vernon by nEtug nea, Manito.
wac, Wis, eestlea all doubt regarding the
identity Of the !sat iivssssl. Scarcely any
other tseces Of the cargo hare been seen
to-day and nothing has been heard OF
those on bosrd. It 10 feared that not q
single soul Of thirty or more aboard is left